Racist Airbnb host ordered to take Asian American studies class

Last year, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky announced that Airbnb would be tackling its racism problem and shortly thereafter, the company introduced new rules for hosts including a non-discrimination policy. In California, Airbnb hosts are also subject to probes and penalties by the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). It's under those regulations that Barker was fined and ordered to take an Asian American studies course and it's the first ruling to do so. Airbnb also banned Barker from its platform.

After the ugly incident, Suh said in a video, "It stings that after living in the US for over 23 years this is what happens. No matter if I follow the law ... no matter how well I treat others, it does not matter. If you are Asian, you are less than human and people can treat you like trash." After the DFEH-mediated agreement was reached between Suh and Barker, DFEH director Kevin Kish told the Guardian, "We were thinking pretty creatively with this agreement. The law tends to be backwards-looking, focusing on compensating people for harm. We are interested in remedies that repair harm and transform relationships."